Black Hole
by lolafalana
Summary: 60 years after the Witnesses gathered and the Volturi left, disgraced, the Cullen clan have settled into their version of domestic tranquility. What happens when the Volturi decide to exact revenge? What does one do when a puzzle piece goes missing?
1. Vision

**Chapter 1: Vision**

**Jasper's POV

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Alice was flipping stones into the ocean while humming a song. I didn't recognize the tune; it must be one that she was composing in her mind. The sun was shining down on us as we bathed in the warmth that we could never have as tiny little rainbows were reflecting off of our skin. Exposure would be my first thought but we were miles away from any human, several miles north of Perth, Australia. Suddenly she turned to me, a smile prominent on her face making her teeth gleam in the warm golden glow of the sun.

"You know," her voice was musical, "that was one of the best meals I've had in a long time."

I returned her smile, though that was _not_ one of my best meals.

Her energy was pouring into my veins, sending wave after wave of pure happiness through me, making me forget my thought. I didn't need this gift to be reveling in the bliss that seemed to consume our lives. Alice continued to smile in my direction. I opened my arms in welcome and in a quick flash she was there, bringing her arms around my neck and kissing me. She didn't need to tell me how much she loved me because it entirely consumed every particle of my body.

She pulled away, still smiling. "It's been two months," her lower lip jutted out but her mood hadn't changed. "I really miss Bella…and Esme," she sighed.

"I know," I clutched her closer to me. "I'm sure Nessie is still throwing a fit about moving to Rockport."

Alice's grin grew even wider, something I didn't think possible, as her mood turned excited. "School's about to start!" she exclaimed.

"Shopping," I muttered as I realized the real reason she wanted to return.

Rockport, a small town east of Seattle, was where we just moved. Jacob wanted to be closer to La Push and we all missed the never ending cloudy days, so we all decided to move there during the summer. Nessie and Jacob, now married, were staying with us – after Bella's persistent begging – so we were all now living under one roof. Luckily, Alice was still predicting stock market changes so our cash flow hadn't changed and we were all able to live peacefully under a very, very large roof.

"It's time to go back, Jasper," she winked at me as she jumped off my lap and began dancing towards civilization. "Emmett is missing you like crazy. I keep seeing him knock on our bedroom door, forgetting we're gone," she laughed over her shoulder.

A chuckle escaped my lips; I was never going to let him live that down. I got up to sprint towards her side where she grabbed my hand and kissed it lightly. "Let's go home," Alice said eagerly.

"Let's," I agreed.

We arrived in Perth as the sun disappeared behind the horizon. The sky was still glowing a soft pink color as we reached the airport. As we began to edge our way through the crowd I had to hold my breath as each human rubbed up against me or flipped their hair in my direction. Even after roughly one hundred years you would think that the smell of a very appetizing human would be easy to overcome but I wanted to taste them all and have the flavor or their blood rush down my aching throat. The reason my eyes were a honey stone color is because of the angel who was holding my hand. Alice.

She turned and looked at me, grimacing. "Jasper," she reprimanded.

I gave her a withering look and mouthed, "Sorry." I knew that she probably saw the many plans that were shuffling through my head as we walked through the airport. How I could just follow one girl into the bathroom and have a taste…I licked my lips in approval of my plan and I felt a light slap across my chest.

"Jasper," Alice scolded, "behave!"

I lowered my head in shame, the same shame I felt every time she caught me gawking after someone's throbbing, pulsing neck. We continued to ebb through the never ending crowd of humans. We finally arrived at our gate. Alice turned to me like she was going to give me 'the speech' about not having any snacks while on the plane.

When her eyes met mine I had a half smirk on my lips, waiting to catch her off guard. Her worried expression became playful. "I'm not going to say it again," she giggled. "Regardless, I bought the seats surrounding us to give you some space.

I shook my head while chuckling at her. "I wasn't going to do anything."

"Of course not," she grinned. "I was just taking precautions."

"Uh-huh," I continued to laugh.

An announcement over the sound system told us it was time to board so we picked up our bags and headed towards the gate. "This is going to be a long flight," I mumbled under my breath.

I felt her hand rub my back. "It'll be okay. I brought you some magazines to read."

I looked sideways at her, "Magazines?" My eyebrows rose.

"Well…yes, digital versions of the last fifty years of _Car and Driver_." A tinkling laugh came through her lips.

"Excellent," I smiled back at her exuberant mood. _Now only if I could wear a gas mask to eradicate the temptation of all those humans so closely packed…like sardines ready to be eaten._

She gave me a grim look and I switched subjects in my mind quickly.

We entered the plane and took our seats as everyone filed past us to claim theirs. It was not long before the small cabin was full of warm bodies. The continuous worried looks Alice gave me kept me in check every time she caught me imaging wreaking havoc.

The plane finally lurched forward and shortly we were in the sky. Alice closed the windows opposite us as I shut the ones near me. We didn't need the sun sneaking up on us as we flew east. She began flipping through the many TV channels that were on the little screen in front of her. She was constantly flipping between two designer shows.

It was only two hours into the flight when I felt a mood shift so devastating that it knocked the breath, which I had been holding in my lungs for the past seventeen minutes, right out of me. I turned quickly to Alice, prying her fingers from the arm rests and pulling her close to my chest.

"What is it Alice?" I pulled her chin up so I could examine her face.

Nothing. There was nothing but a blank expression in her eyes – her lips parted slightly as if she were gasping in horror. As her vision blasted through her body I could feel the tenor of the insight that she was still receiving. Pain and anguish so pure, so rich, that I could taste it as it was flowing deep in her veins– my mouth was so full of death that the humans no longer smelt appetizing.

After several minutes I began to panic as she was still deeply into this vision. I rubbed her cheeks and her hair and brought her ever closer to my body, trying to think of some way to snap her out of this, to bring her back to reality. I could feel her pain as it passed through her body, each flame lashing at me tenfold.

"Alice," I cried softly, "please, come back to me."

I heard a stewardess walking down the aisle and pressed my fingers over Alice's eyes, closing them so she imitated sleep.

"Pillow?" the woman asked.

"No thanks," I tried to smile but only a crooked grimace showed.

She turned and walked back up the aisle, confusion in her mood.

I felt Alice stiffen in my arms and a tiny sob leave her parted lips. I looked down at her, bringing her face only inches from mine. She blinked twice.

"Are you okay? What did you see?" the word's escaped my lips in a rush.

"The Volturi," she cried.

I stared at her in silence, waiting for more of an explanation.

"They have finally decided to get revenge on the Cullen's and anyone who stood to witness with us," she finally explained, her voice unnerving.

"All of us?" I gulped.

"Even the wolves," she whispered. "They are going to attack the most talented first, until all of our allies are dead. Then, they will come for us." She paused for a fraction of a second. "Zafrina is first," she barely whispered.

Zafrina. My mind whirled at the thought. _Zafrina_, I shook my head, _our fierce and loyal Nomad friend from the Amazon, the one who thought of Nessie like a daughter._ My mind briefly wandered, uncomprehending to the many times we had visited.

"Alice, when?" I asked urgently, quietly, aware of the curiosity of the flight attendant. I worked to calm Alice while sending calm mental reassurance towards the concerned human observing us from behind.

"I… it's not certain." Alice closed her pain-filled eyes in concentration. "Soon," she whispered.

I considered our options while looking out the window, realizing we were three thousand feet in the air. The most frustrating part of air travel, despite the advances of the past century, was being trapped for the better part of an entire day. I could feel Alice's anguish at the same thought. We flipped open our phones at the same instant, Bella's face appearing on Alice's screen a split second before Carlisle appeared on mine. I grabbed the ear bud and inserted it before I spoke, it would prevent the curious human ears from listening, although I knew Alice would be able to follow the conversation.

"Jasper!" Carlisle was saying as I adjusted the volume. I could hear Alice murmuring, low and urgent, to Bella, already.

"Son, it's good to see you! Are you heading…" his voice trailed off at the expression on my face.

"Carlisle, we need to get in touch with Zafrina. _Now_," I said quietly.

I turned to glare at the flight attendant at this point. Her eyes grew wide and she blushed scarlet. _Ugh_. Alice was too distracted to even notice. As I turned away, I heard her retreat back into coach. A quick glance at the few other passengers told me that they were oblivious to the change in atmosphere in our section.

"She isn't easily reached. You know that."

_Of course_. Zafrina considered phones intrusive, and eminently impractical in the jungle. When we visited, she had graciously allowed that we meet in Tefé, but she was clearly more comfortable in the wild.

"Son, what happened?" Carlisle broke into my reverie.

I glanced at Alice, who didn't look up from her screen. "The Volturi," I replied grimly. "Alice saw… Carlisle, they have made the decision. Alice… apparently, they intend to exact_ revenge_," I spat out the last word, infuriated, "starting with the most talented."

Carlisle's face became incredulous. I could hear murmuring in the background, indicating that Esme and perhaps others in my family were in the room. "Yes, go," Carlisle said, distracted, before returning his attention to me. "Emmett and Rose are going to head to Brazil. Hopefully they can track her down before…" he looked back at me, "Jasper, is Alice sure? I can't imagine Aro destroying Zafrina when he covets her talents."

Alice's head whipped toward me before I could answer. I heard Bella calling her, but her face was vacant. "Only two," she whispered.

Carlisle was silent, unable to see her on the monitor, but able to hear. Bella, too, went silent. "Alice?" I whispered. "Alice, what is only two? What do you see?"

She shook her head. "I…. I see two… Caius and Marcus. They have ordered this. Not Aro. Aro…" she paused as I watched her face ripple in concentration. "Aro… I can't see Aro. I need to concentrate, Bella," she said, turning back to her phone, "I'll call soon." She snapped her phone shut and leaned back against the headrest, closing her eyes.

"Jasper, let me concentrate."

"Carlisle," I murmured, "What do you make of this?" I idly noticed the flight attendant making her way back down the aisle towards us. Thankfully, she must have noticed Alice feigning sleep and my distraction. She passed by, and I wondered if she prayed to any God that was wordlessly protecting her from the monster in row 2, seat B that would otherwise have brought her life to an abrupt end. I swallowed the searing pain in my throat and returned my attention to the issue at hand. "What do you make of it?"

"I don't know, son. Alice's vision could mean many things. It may mean that Aro is letting Caius have his way after these many years. It may be…. Alice's visions have been wrong before…." His voice faded, a pensive look on his face.

I snorted. "When?" I asked derisively.

"Well, a certain loved one didn't die when she jumped off a cliff," he stated gently.

"Point taken," I said, conceding nothing. "What are Emmett and Rose going to do when they get to Brazil?"

The thought of my brother and sister heading directly towards the focus of the Volturi offensive worried me. I loved Emmett, truly, like a brother, but he wasn't very thoughtful about these things. As a warrior, he was excellent. But at _strategy_…. That was not his strength. Rose, too, was a fierce and formidable opponent, especially when someone that she loved was threatened. Frankly, I could imagine only one other situation in our mutual histories when someone, or several some ones, she loved had been in great peril. But for all her passion, strategy, again, was not her strength.

"They will be calling in once they get in the air. I'll have them call you." Carlisle paused. "Has Alice…." His voice trailed off.

At the sound of her name, my love came back to me, head snapping around, eyes luminous pools of concern. "I only see Caius and Marcus, ordering the attack. Jasper," she said faintly. What was once my heart shuddered with concern for the pain she was obviously in, "Do you think it is a trick? Aro knows what I can do. They may be counting on this."

Carlisle, unable to see Alice but hearing every word, answered for me. "It's a possibility Alice. As I said, I can't see Aro condoning killing what he considers to be 'the best and the brightest' of our kind." He frowned, but imperceptibly shook his head.

"Carlisle, is that possible?" I could hear Edward in the background. Apparently Bella had alerted him to our call, and they had joined the family in this bizarre conference call.

"How long 'till you land, son?" he asked me, ignoring Edwards question.

I looked at my watch. "Miss?" I queried in my most polite voice. The Flight Attendant was standing at the front of the cabin, preparing a meal that would not be touched by the passengers in seats 2A and 2B. She jumped at my voice. "Can you tell me when we will be landing, please?"

She smiled tentatively at me, unsure of my shifts in mood. "We should be in Seattle in about 10 hours, Mr. Hale. Our arrival time should be 6:45am, local time." I nodded and turned back to the phone.

Carlisle had heard. "We will meet you at the airport."

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_This story was Co-Authored with LATAS. _

_All reviews are appreciated and welcomed! _


	2. Mindless

_This story is Co-Authored with LATAS._

_Authors' Notes: We wanted to thank those who have begun reading our new story. We have many ideas and a lot in store. Reviews are always welcomed and thanks to our new followers. _

_We would like __to suggest the song __"Dark Skies" by The Electric City for this chapter.

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_

**Chapter 2: Mindless**

**Alice's POV

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The flashes of possible scenarios continued to insinuate themselves into my mind. Rolling, changing, precarious amounts of billowing hazy smoke swirled through my consciousness as the pictures became indistinct, harder to define.

The Volturi, their black robes billowing in the evening air, impressive in their castle battlements, were marching through the halls of the Volterra City. The torches on the walls flickered, bathing the walls with a luminous golden glow, lighting the passageways. The centuries of old stonework scarcely glistened in the gloom that surrounded the castle.

I could sense Jasper tense beside me, making me flinch slightly. My vision spiraled, swirled around, circulated and twisted until I was seeing new images, making me forget where I was. Glittering red rubies of blood, fresh blood, were dripping down the ancient stonework, darkly crimson and gluttonous.

Almost like an echo, a distant annoyance, was Jasper, who I knew to be right next to me. It was comforting, but I was impatient with the distraction. His presence felt like a well loved blanket, surrounding and suffocating as he continued to send calm reassurance in my direction. I needed to focus; I pushed the distraction from my mind.

The premonition shifted, turned over and was suddenly showing me something different. Caius, coldly stating, _"Now is our time."_ Marcus was unmoving, stony and unresponsive to Caius. The Volturi guards, anticipating their orders, eyes eager and alight with malice were waiting impatiently in the glow of the eerie light. Aro...pushed to its limits, my vision, trying to find the leader. _Where the__ hell was Aro?_ This scene, this thought, was a constant in my many startling insights.

The one constant that continued to invade in my mind during the shifting pandemonium was the mysterious absence of Aro. _What can that mean?_ Every vision was devoid of the one who wanted to rule us all, but in one vision it appeared as if Caius and Marcus were arguing – _possibly over Aro?_ The guard stood stone still, silent and sullen beside them, waiting for their command – their instruction. _What about Aro's authorization?_

The next instant the vision would become unfocused and make me dizzy from the blurriness before it would show me the next sapience. Caius was giving instructions to an enthusiastic and overly exited guard, like they were receiving sacrament of ordination. Marcus continued to stand silent and disapproving, yet he never voiced his opposition.

Bluish smoke, a lazy puff of mist, brought on a whole new round of foresight. This time Felix and Jane raced from the room and before the divination was clear the wispy fog and twirling of unnatural clouds showed me another view. Demetri and Renata fleeing through the tall metal framed doors of the castle. I frowned. _If Renata is leaving, then where is Aro? _I had never known Renata to leave Aro's side, at least not willingly. This was the most disturbing revelation. I had no love for Aro, but I had to agree with Carlisle's assessment. It made no sense for Aro to allow the deaths of our talented _friends_. My mind twisted painfully around the word. If Renata left Volterra…

_No, no, no…_no_, _the thought circulated through my mind like an old LP skipping a groove. I could feel Jasper's anxiety, radiating out from him. I would have felt it despite our proximity. _Well, hahaha, _I thought to myself, mirthlessly, disconnected, _At least he isn't thinking of that flight attendant any longer. _

I was distracted again as the vision intensified and the pain that rippled through my body was so horrifying I could feel Jasper's hand cover mine in worry and possibly panic. I ignored his touch as I concentrated my hardest to see the one thing I was hoping to never see. _Edward_, I gasped. If I had a working human heart, I am sure it would have stopped. Edward, sacrificing himself. _But why?_ Another translucent blurry cloud distorted my vision until it finally began flashing and shifting so often that I was sure, had I been human, I would have vomited violently. The vision of Edward sacrificing himself brought my eyes to near venomous tears as the new sensation – death – lashed at me. _Why would he do something that would ultimately kill us all – kill our souls?_

_Oh. My. God. Is there a God? Who could I pray to?_ I pondered idly, feeling disembodied. After nearly one hundred and fifty years of this _gift_, it should seem second nature. But seeing those I loved in these visions…in pain…I became disjointed.

I needed to focus. I _must_ focus.

My vision danced and twirled…Esme being tortured, impaled by Jane's baleful glance, and Edward throwing himself between. Edward, writhing in pain, Bella launching herself in fury at Jane's tiny body…_Would the tragedies never end?_ I sobbed quietly next to Jasper, who hadn't let go of my hand.

We were landing in Seattle after an interminably long flight. If I never had to endure another flight like that again, it would be too soon. _Italy was worse, _the thought skipped through my brain uninvited then disappeared as quickly. _Yes._ The flight to Italy many years ago _was _worse. It was tangible… I was losing my brother, but I couldn't see if I would lose my best friend - my human friend. The thought of Bella, so pale and immobile on the flight to Europe, despite the gravity of the memory, brought a smile to my lips, albeit a whimsical smile, as if one were thinking of a time long ago. True, in so many ways. But currently, the uncertainty, the helplessness, was immeasurably more difficult to catalog in my overwrought mind.

I was finding it difficult to concentrate. As if my mind was in overdrive. _Too many variables_. I hadn't felt like this the last time. _The last time_. When Jazz and I _ran_, misleading those whom we cherished most. But, although we hadn't felt sure at that time, the last time… we had succeeded_. I must trust these…changing…visions. I _must_ trust myself, _I chanted silently.

I heard the girl coming back up the aisle, cheerfully asking that all tray tables and seat backs be brought to their upright positions for landing. She paused just behind our row and apparently decided; considering we had never bothered to adjust either to bypass us without comment. I cautiously opened the shade on the window a half inch. _Welcome home_, I thought to myself sardonically. We were already below a thick layer of oppressive gray clouds. The humans around us started to fidget, collecting magazines and purses. I noticed that Jasper was staring straight ahead, a pained look on his face, but I knew that this time the expression wasn't caused by him willing himself to control his thirst.

"Jazz?" I began, picking up his hand. He turned towards me slowly, and I realized that he was already running through possible strategies in his head. I knew I needed to concentrate on these visions. I needed to get _home._

We disembarked, walking hand in hand into the terminal. Our family was standing beyond the security checkpoint, and it took every ounce of self control I possessed to not fly into their arms. It was Bella's amber eyes that I sought first, and my face broke into a small smile for the first time in hours when I saw her standing on her toes looking over the crowd.

I let go of Jasper's hand and I ran towards Bella as she plunged through the crowd, like you'd see in a horrible romantic movie. We both reached our arms out and embraced each other fiercely, roughly, like we'd never see each other again.

"It's so good to see you, Alice," Bella pulled me tighter to her chest.

"I missed you so much!" I cried happily.

The temporary relief I felt was soon swept away as the deluge of misery and dread drowned me once I saw Edward's head poking over the crowds, walking towards us. Bella could tell an immediate difference in my stature and pulled me away from our hug, keeping a firm grasp on my upper arms; her honey stoned eyes began searching for something while eyeing me up and down, doing a mental inventory.

"What's going on, Alice?" she whispered at my expression. "Tell me that we are all going to be all right," she requested with a plea in her voice, looking over her shoulder at Edward who was closing the distance between us.

Bella's fate was eternally intertwined with Edwards, leaving each others destiny resolutely dependent upon the other, making the most devastating of all my visions send pain scorching through my already tense body at the realization that if I lost either of them it would be like losing both of them.

Edward had finally reached us and was standing next to Bella, reading my mind – _seeing_ the visions I was remembering for him.

"Where's Aro?" he asked roughly.

"I don't know. I can't see him," I said thickly, realizing that the next premonition that would loom into view would be his sacrifice.

_Edward, you can't tell Bella, _I commanded in my mind before I showed him the cloudy and misty depths of my psyche as the sight of Edward's sacrifice came to view. I watched with him, both of us wincing as the vision played out.

The dark skies were absent of any moon and the stars barely shone through the clouds of the misty evening that this tragedy would take place. The Volturi and their guard were in Washington, coming to claim the Cullen's and their friends, killing any who refused to join them. The misty opalescent blue of another day emerged from the very foggy foresight that was claiming my mind as we saw Edward giving himself up – _but for what?_ - The Volturi burning him – Bella screaming and falling to the ground, refusing to get up.

Edward reached out and placed a hand on my shoulder. "That's enough," he ordered while eyeing Bella carefully, making sure she didn't notice the sudden anticipation of horror.

I felt arms wrap around my shoulders as Esme pulled me into a deep and engrossing hug. Her love poured out of her and it was momentarily comforting. With a stupendous effort I placed a smile across my face as my other family members lined up to greet Jasper and I. Carlisle was the last to hug me, his eyes grave with worry.

"Tell me about the Volturi," Carlisle met my eyes evenly. At the name, _Volturi_, my stomach seared in pain as an oddly detached feeling flooded through me.

Jasper took my hand, making our connection less permeable and a sense of ease fell over me before I had to explain _most_ of what I saw.

"They're coming – but not all of them. Aro is absent from the fray and some of the guard have fled with him, I think," I paused to reorganize my thoughts and focus on the vision of the twins better. "I'm not positive what it was that I saw, but I know one thing's for certain – Caius is on a mission, a warpath. He's determined to see the dismemberment of the Cullen's."

"Zafrina?" he asked, horrified.

"They are still planning on finding and killing her," my eyes roamed the airport, realizing Rosalie and Emmett had departed after greeting us. "Have Rosalie and Emmett already left?"

"Yes," Esme answered with a little sob in her voice. It was obvious that the disbanding of our family at such a crucial moment had her on edge.

"Why didn't they say goodbye?" my eyes darted around the airport once more.

"They were in a hurry and they didn't want this to be _goodbye_," Edward stated grimly.

Bella and Edward were hand in hand and I could see her anxious expression wearing Edward down, slowly, meticulously.

A small horrified gasp escaped my lips as another unruly bit of foresight scattered across my mind.

"Benjamin," Edward stated in disbelief.

"We must hurry," I grabbed Jaspers hand as we began making our way through the ever growing crowd of people, making our way to the cars in a matter of minutes.

I opened the door to the backseat of Edward's vehicle, where Bella had already seated herself in the front, turning around and staring at me – waiting to hear some good news. I shook my head back and forth, letting her know that there was no favorable revelation.

"We've decided to move back to Forks," Bella said simply. "We thought it would be best to be near our ally's in La Push."

I nodded.

Edward spun his way out of the parking garage, flying past slower moving cars and trucks. The sky was opaque with rain, as the clouds turned darker with the coming storm.

"We haven't been back there yet," Edward added. "The house should still be in good shape, we had someone care for it all those years."

Lightning flashed down and hit a tree, cracking it in half as we continued to speed swiftly down the interstate towards our new home – Forks. The wind began to speed up as it lashed against the windshield, sending rain towards us in droves making our vision temporarily blurry on and off as the wipers flew back and forth at tremendous speeds, flicking the excess water out towards the road.

I placed my head on Jaspers comforting shoulder as I closed my eyes, hoping I could wash these visions away, or produce new, happier ones. _Would this be the end?_ I contemplated in my mind.

"No," Edward answered softly, peaking a look in the rear view mirror.

I felt a great trepidation as we progressed down the road so I let Jasper's peaceful fortitude swallow me whole. As it swept over me I was able to focus outside my mind for a few seconds at a time.

"Are Nessie and Jacob at home or are they in Forks?" I asked.

Bella twisted in her seat again, her pain filled eyes looking over me before answering. "They are in Forks, awaiting our arrival. Jacob has informed the wolves of our situation," she paused for a few seconds, contemplating something in her mind. "Sam wants to return to the wolf pack to help but Edward thinks he's better off to stay human."

"But he hasn't turned into a wolf in thirty years," I gasped. "All he's going to do is hurt himself. Emily will be devastated."

"She's actually encouraging him," Bella smirked darkly. "She is almost ninety – she knows she won't be around much longer," Bella took in a deep breath. "I think maybe she is hoping that he might have something to live for when she…passes on."

"Ludicrous," I muttered, pain lacing my statement.

Edward nodded his head to agree with me. "I tried to tell him that it was unnecessary." Edward deliberated for a moment. "There is a new wolf in the pack, making the numbers up to twenty-two now."

"Another wolf? But we just barely moved back," I said in disbelief.

"Yeah – and get this – he's already imprinted on a girl named Tazanna," Edward chuckled under his breath, but it was not an amused sound.

Suddenly Bella chimed in, "She wants to become a vampire so she can help us fight the Volturi."

I smacked my hand against my forehead. "What is with you crazy humans?" I sighed theatrically, and laughter instantly filled the car, sending all grief out the window for only a fraction of a second.

The rest of the drive was quiet and uneventful as I tried to rest my tired mind after the imprisonment of the many visions that enveloped me earlier. With Edwards driving we were back in Forks in a very short time. The sign welcomed us, and even though it had been sixty years, the town hadn't changed much at all, especially in population size.

We wove through the quiet streets of Forks until we reached our driveway, which was grown up and needed a good trimming. As Edward drove his way through the many large trees and overgrown grass that had over taken the drive, he suddenly stiffened, jerking the car to the right slightly. We were all alert, staring at him.

"What is it, Edward?" Jasper asked first.

"It's…Gianna," he said coldly, surprised.

Bella and I both raised our eyebrows at him. "The human?" Bella inquired.

"Apparently – they decided to keep her after the Volturi returned from their trip here…she's a vampire," he snarled.

"Why is she here?" I asked, stunned.

"I'm not sure, but I have a bad feeling about this." Edward pressed the accelerator down as far as it would go; the RPM's on the dash went flying up, hitting red before he slammed the gear shift. We reached the end of the driveway where we spun around once, the car stopping only an inch from the stairs.

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	3. Black

Co-Authored with LATAS

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_3. Black_

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_Dark._

_My mind idly considered the situation, then just as rapidly dismissed it. What was, after all, the point? Darkness was as minute a problem to me as it was to a cat. Or a bat. I chuckled to myself, amused by my unintended wit._

_Pain._

_I lazily measured the concept. It had been so very long since I had thought about pain; it was a foreign emotion, one I had turned off years ago. Instead, I embraced the numbness that was currently, at this moment in time, my life. Or immortality. I considered immortality and the time frame it encompassed. This current odd situation I found myself in seemed wholly insignificant, when measured against over one million sunsets._

_I could tell that I was bound with something, although what could possibly hold me was a conundrum. The last time I had been bound against my will was when they were burning the fields...._

_Odd, that. Human memories?_

_My father was rich, rich enough for a legion of sons to carry on his name and his power, yet he favored my other siblings. My brother, in particular. Older than I, and very careless, he nevertheless had power over me, being in control of the family wealth. I would have resented him, had I not been blissfully happy with my life._

_The old memories were strange, like a forgotten tale._

_Lilac. Vineyards ready for harvesting. The evening repast. My wife, readying food for the evening meal...._

_My wife._

_My … wife. I had not thought of _her_ in…. 3,000 years. Could I even recall her face?_

_Her __warm__ skin, the blush on her face, the… love… in her eyes. My beautiful and willing helpmate. The_ _child on her hip. Yes, I could vaguely recall her face. Heart shaped, with ebony pools for eyes. Full lips, curved in a smile whenever she caught my eyes, staring at her._

_When my brother bound me against my will, it was to take what was rightly mine. Though he had everything, he was jealous of me. I knew this, and it burned with a hatred through all the filial loyalty that my father had spent two decades drilling into me. I knew my brother desired that which was rightfully mine, by oath. _

_Interesting. I had not thought of that in a very… long… time. I could not recall his name._

_He bound me; he burned the lands on my relatively tiny estate, despite the vast acres he already controlled. My child suffered a mysterious accident. I remember watching, a captive, as they carried the infant from the watering pool. I could vividly recall, despite the memory being human, the white pallor of the child's face. I could remember my wife collapsing._

_Shortly after this event, or so it may have seemed, I met my creator. I could not recall how or when it occurred. I could remember drowning in sorrow, my child dead, my wife taken. I had no regrets when I became…like this, immortal, strong, powerful. Our association, this creator and mine, did not last long. We both craved supremacy, perhaps, indeed likely, me more than he. We parted our ways only a year after my transformation. Through his thoughts, I knew the parting was coming before it was mentioned._

_The blackness never faded into white. These memories weren't for fond reminiscing. It was for torment…like every horrible thought bounded me tighter. My own private hell._

_My sister wanted to get away from my family more than me. Didyme was married off to an oaf of a man. After my transformation, and realizing I had the ability to read the minds of people with just a simple touch, all I wanted to do was bring her relief from her troubled world. A simple handshake showed me how off base he was. How cruel he was to her. How frightened he was of me, despite pretense._

_My strength had made me power hungry and I wistfully imagined that her gift would be something more impressive than mine. I knew it was going to be, I just had a feeling. Flying, perhaps? Maybe the manipulation of people's thoughts instead of just absorbing them?_

_I was wrong._

_Happiness. That was her gift._

_Men, vampires…they all loved her. She loved only one back. Marcus._

_…I had too. To keep Marcus, I had too. He shouldn't have fallen in love – her gift to please men firmly in her control… No. He _should_have let her go. They should have never planned to leave. It was my right._

_Fire. Death. She brought it on herself. She was to blame._

_I burned her. Little ashes flying around the air as the wind blew her away. I did it. Myself._

_Regret. Hmmmm. Another emotion I hadn't felt in a long time. Would that I were totally honest with myself, the emotion of regret had just been on hold, replaced with the never ending numbness. Now that I thought about it, all the time in the world apparently on my side, had I felt a single emotion since my love died?_

_Power. It was all I wanted. Yet, it brought on the worse memory yet._

_This memory, very painfully sharp, an immortal memory. Remembering Tiziana…. She of the brown eyes. Eyes that I had loathed to change. But so selfish had I been, I had done it, despite wondering if I would be strong enough._

_I had been new. Relatively new. To this life._

_Did I refer to my existence as "life?" I pondered this in my curious prison. Thoughts flitted through as moths around a flame._

_Tiziana._

_Excruciating pain._

_Odd that I thought of this now. I had come across her in the local market place where I was... Existing... with my Didyme. Tiziana was alluring. Tall, dark skinned, lush black hair which fell to her waist in an impenetrable curtain. I could recall the sway of her hips as she walked, and my astonishment at the feelings within me were as vivid in my dark prison as they were that day. She wore a white stola, indicating her social importance, yet her aloof manner didn't seem class-induced. She turned, staring right at me, but looking straight through me at the same time. I was immediately intrigued. And desperately thirsty._

_I had stalked her. Through the_ _streets of Ischia, plotting how to take her at the first opportunity. It had presented itself so quickly; I hadn't had time to prepare. Down an isolated lane I had followed her. Clever as she was, sensing me, she turned abruptly, facing me, running literally into my arms. Careless, that. Rather than kill her immediately, I had stared as each thought of hers had assaulted me. Married, unwillingly, to a cruel man who beat her daily. Dreams of escape, her thoughts as she stared at me with anger and wonder. Anger that she was followed. Her eyes held the same distant detached appraisal, but her thoughts were in turmoil. Wonder, is this who might hold salvation?_

_This last gave me pause. Had this been her thought or my own? 'Didyme,' my unconscious thought had broken through my reverie._

_We stared at each other silently, she and I, until I heard a man's voice. He was angry. I recalled the fright in her face, but not caused by me. Not caused by my ice cold hands or my pallid complexion. Not even by my terrifying eyes, black with thirst. No. It was not me she feared, despite all that should have told her to run from me into the arms of her husband. I reflexively pulled her behind me. Why I felt like I needed to protect her, I'll never know. All I really wanted was to taste the richest and most profound blood I had ever had the pleasure to smell._

_He came out of the nearby abode. All things considered, it appeared to be well appointed. I assumed he was in the copper trade. She clutched me closer to her as he rounded on us, and I lost what I assumed would have been my heart, had it been beating. I could still hear her heart, pounding; her thoughts swirling in an uproar. Her most recent miscarriage the result of yet another beating. She was so tired. Her hatred of him, a powerful emotion dominating the undercurrent of fear._

_It was over in moments, and he was lifeless before us prior to registering what I was doing. I slowly straightened and turned, resigned to seeing the fear and loathing in her eyes, but was met with a calculating gaze, a raised brow. She knew. She_**knew**_, yet she very deliberately walked forward to take my hand and press my palm to her warm cheek. _

_Salvation. Was this her thought? Or mine? She had walked away that day with me, never taking a backward glance._

_Many conversations, many tears on her part, agony on mine, to convince me what I must try. Her brown eyes, full of tears months later as the fever threatened to end her life, and still I agonized. It was always a struggle to keep her alive. Now that what she pleaded for was so close, could I deny her?_

_I drank deeply as her blood seemed to heat every bit of me from the inside. The fever made her blood weaker, helping to fight against the burning thirst. Was I strong enough?_

_I was. Against every odd, and with no understanding on what needed to be done, I had managed it. Not, of course, without causing her immeasurable suffering. Suffering which I lived every moment with and through her, clutching her to me, willing myself to take any and all of the fire unto myself. Every thought racing through her agonized mind brought me to my knees, her body arching in my arms. Her long slow rattling breath, sighing out the last bit of life before she woke into this new world._

_It was still dark in my unknown prison. I chose to return to these odd memories, relishing the long repressed feelings they created in my solitary reflection._

_Tiziana had remained my singer, despite no longer having blood that tormented me day and night. Now we were partners, equals. We roamed Europe, finding others of our kind but never remaining in one place for very long. Our kind was very territorial, and not fond of sharing territory. We settled near Rome._

_Rome. I frowned at the memory._

_My sweet was loathe to hunt innocents, and preferred the truly evil. I laughed at her, asking again and again what she believed we were. I could recall the shock in her blood red eyes as she measured her gaze at me. She believed in good. She did not believe we were evil. Tiziana had lived through evil._

_A light insinuated itself into my consciousness. I sensed someone, maybe a threat? Was I remembering, or was this happening now? I struggled to regain focus._

As if the bounds were broken I could move again, my eyes opened to witness Alec in the corner of the dungeon, talking rapidly to Caius before he noticed his mistake. I was confused, caught up in my mind, my memories. I flinched, looking at Alec, and trying to clear my mind and make ready to spring at him. My self-preservation was on alert, despite my confusion. He was distracted for only a fraction of a second, yet instantly regained his ability to place his _spell_ upon me.

_Blackness._

_My internal torment was not over._

_My mind skipped forward several centuries, like the needle in a badly mangled vinyl record. My memories were now recalling my worst pain. Such that I imagined losing a limb would have felt, or as if I were slowly roasting in a fire. Each second I was in this blackness my mind played tricks on me._ _My memory was mocking me._

_Was this a memory?_

_Was I in hell?_

_ She was there, in front of me, eyes bright and staring, fingers only inches from mine._

_I reached. I stretched. Still, our fingers never touched, my fingers forever being bare, never able to interlace with hers again._

_An arm wrapped around her torso flinging her back into the darkness._

_A wicked grin placed upon a faceless man._

_She was screaming. Those screams, torment, echoing in the darkness, this velvety black that was now my prison._

_I could not see, but I could hear. My memory recalling every sound as I ran faster than I had ever before. She was fighting for her life, the impossibly fragile echo of her body being torn apart causing my body to want to slowly crumble to the ground._

_But I had to run. I had to save her._

_I knew it was over before I reached her. The deep violet smoke billowed in the evening air; the scent gently drifted over the houses and tickled my nose. I trembled, and inhaled, despite my torment. I had no reason to actually breathe, other than to stimulate my sense of smell. My stone heart shattered._

_When I reached the flames, I leaped into them, my hands reaching out, grasping flames. After each agonized attempt to grab at that which was no longer there, I looked down and my hands, full of fire, nothing else. It burned, but I could feel nothing. I was consumed with trying to prevent her death, though I knew that she was gone for eternity._

_Tiziana had been caught in a fight with other vampires, stronger vampires. Why they attacked, I will never know._

_Caius found me there, lying in the street, broken, torn…dead inside._

_I was too late. I had been too late._

_Late…_

_The memory lashed at me, the smell in the air made me sick with grief. A thick black fog surrounded me…was inside me._

_I pleaded for death. I begged for them to kill me. They refused, watching Caius carefully, gauging his reaction. Marcus wanted too, after what had happened.... What I had caused him. His pain. His agony. Didyme. In the end, Marcus refused, wanting me to suffer how he suffered._

_Suffer I did. Bitter and hard, both of us, Marcus and I, living breathing 'Gods,' incapable of love. That was what our.... Existence.... Had become. Side by side, not by choice, simply because of apathy. Cowardice. An inability to follow into the flames, and the lack of someone strong enough to dismember us by choice. One would not destroy the other. That would mean mercy. Marcus harbored no desire to make this existence any easier on me and I simply could not destroy the one creature who could possibly understand my suffering._

_Volterra City. My coven. We made new laws._

_Laws. Like we were royalty. Gods. We were worshiped as such. Eventually we settled on only a few laws. One such law stopped all vampire attacks within our "Holy City."_

_Still, this didn't ease my anguish. Tiziana, gone. Didyme, gone. Ash. Smoke. Wind._

_Was this why I was so intrigued with Edward's relationship with Bella? Jealousy? I coveted their relationship…I desired their gifts. They had love, and I remained bereft._

_I had a wife, yet it was mere convenience. Something Caius pushed upon me to help me 'cope.' After several hundred years and not moving, lying on the dirty ground, he had had enough._

_I bottled my emotions. My despair. They thought I had forgotten._

_Imbeciles._

_Internally, I burned, writhed, and shriveled at the pain. They didn't understand. Not one of them – they were oblivious - except one, the only one, Marcus, and we simply coexisted. We certainly had never confided in each other. How could we? I was responsible for causing this pain that he felt. This same pain that I was sure was destroying any humanity in the darkest recesses of our bodies. Numbness on the outside doesn't translate to happiness on the inside, though I played the part well. _

_ The Cullen's didn't understand, either. Edward was too busy reading my current thoughts to dig too deeply into my mind._

_Not true, I automatically corrected myself. Edward has simply not tapped into the depth of his gift. He was, relatively speaking, very, very young. He would learn over time to be able to probe deeper into thoughts, even without connecting._

_Odd, that. Someone reading my mind for a change. I recalled his torment in Volterra, his pleading for death when he believed she had died. I refused to grant his request. Selfish. His love made me madly jealous._

_Isabella. _

_She was why I was here. Why my coven had turned on me._

_The thoughts were there, early on, but the plan was never firm. None of them thought it wise to betray me, my gift infallibly holding all their knowledge. There was slight unease with the Cullen's, although I could not, at the time, understand why. Why should they be feared? Eight weak disconnected immortals, hunting animals, for God's sake._

_Why kill them? Carlisle was an old friend, even if an old fool. Caius was disapproving. 'They should be punished for making us look weak and undecided,' he once said. He was salivating for revenge, yet I thought him to be able to hold his tongue, bottle his reactions._

_Again, I was wrong. Here I lay, bound tightly by my own guard, unable to leave my mind, my thoughtful stupor._

_Would the Cullen 'family' survive? Perhaps they would. Perhaps they would actually triumph, unlike our last meeting. Maybe they would kill me. End my suffering._

_Thoughts, memories, things I wished to never think again were boiling up inside me and spilling over. Was this the plan? My own personal torture? They didn't need Jane for this. Imprison me in the darkness and let me torture myself into insanity._

_Tiziana. Now that I had opened the flood gates to her name, I couldn't seem to lock them up again._

_That's why. _

_It struck me suddenly with amazing, chaotic, and blinding clarity. The silly human girl who answered the phones. The plan was death, yet I insisted on changing her. To everyone's surprise. Not the least of which was mine. Even to hers._

_Gianna. She reminded me so much of my Tiziana. Her dark skin and long silky hair. Killing her was my first option, my 'original plan.' The reminder, too much. I did not realize it at the time, when she entered with Heidi._

_There she was, in my chamber, ready for me to feast. Terror was present in her eyes as she tilted her neck for me. When I bit down, the taste was sensational. There was something there, different. The taste was almost the same…still, she held only one, one thousandth of a fraction of the spell Tiziana had on me._

_Instead of drinking this human dry of life, I let go. She fell limply into my waiting arms. I held her for three days._

_My 'wife'…enraged with jealousy, left. Disappeared into the streets of Volterra and beyond without a trace. I was astounded. She had never shown much affection for me. Truth be told, I was quite certain she loathed me. None of my coven has seen her in fifty years. Our bond, such as it had been, was easily broken over this silly human girl._

_Tiziana may have ran to me for salvation, but maybe Gianna was _my_salvation._

_I wonder, and question if I care whether Gianna escaped Volterra, or if she was purple wisps of smoke floating above the forests that surrounded Volterra in the low lands…_

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**Authors' Notes: **Hi all! Sorry it took us so long to get this chapter up. In case you are wondering, we are no longer telling whose point of view each chapter is in. Don't worry, we will make it obvious. Now that we both have our stuff straight, we will hopefully be updating at more regular of intervals. (LATAS says "It's my fault, and know that Lola calls me daily to give me a kick in the tush to get me going, but life sometimes interferes...")

This chapter was in italics, mostly, because they are thoughts, less narrative.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter and **please review! **We love to hear what you have to say about our story.


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